BIOGRAPHY
Joe was born in Lincolnshire, his family moved to Plaistow when he was 2 years old.
In 1956, Brown formed a skiffle group, The Spacemen, which lasted until the skiffle movement faded towards the end of the 1950s.
In 1958, he was spotted by TV producer Jack Good, who hired him as lead guitarist on his new TV show “Boy Meets Girl”, which led to him backing many U.S. artists, including Gene Vincent & Eddie Cochran, on their U.K. tours.
He signed a management agreement with Larry Parnes and released “The Dark town” and “Strutters Ball” which hit the charts and of course “Picture of You” which hit the number one slot.
In 1962 he toured as Joe Brown and The Bruvvers. During the ‘60’s he was voted top UK vocal personality in the 1962 NME magazine.
He appeared in the films “What a Crazy world”, “Three hats for Lisa” and a cameo as himself in the 1964 film “The Beauty Jungle”
Joe starred in the hit West End musical “Charlie Girl” and many theatre shows and pantomimes.
He also presented his own Children’s TV show “Joe & Co”.
In 1972, he formed another band, Brown’s Home Brew, which played rock & roll, Country and Gospel music. This eclectic collection of musical styles, together with his hits, became the basis of his live sets to this day.
In the 1980s, he presented a daytime quiz show called “Square One”, and an early evening show “Show Me” on ITV.
In 2008, Brown’s 50th anniversary celebrations included a UK gold album for sales over 100,000 copies of Joe Brown – The Very Best Of, a 37-date spring tour, an all-star concert at the Royal Albert Hall with Mark Knopfler, Jools Holland, Sam Brown, Chas & Dave and others, and a 36-date tour.
At the “MOJO” magazine’s awards in 2009, Joe was presented with the lifetime award for outstanding contribution to music after 51 years of recording. He was also awarded an MBE for services to music.
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Biography taken from "Rats in the Spotlight" - Written by Brother Tommy J
